1. Field of the Invention
One aspect of the present invention relates to a method for forming molding compounds.
2. Background Art
In producing many articles, designers desire to find articles which may be substituted for existing articles. In certain cases, the substitute article should have the same or better strength characteristics as the original article and also be relatively lighter in weight and lower in cost. This relative reduction in weight may be accomplished, in part, by integrating parts or by using materials of lighter weight. Designs that integrate parts are often accomplished by molding operations. Molding operations use molding compounds that typically have relatively lighter weight than the materials they are replacing. However, articles made from molding compounds may have higher unit costs than the products that they replace, in part, because of the high cost of the reinforcements used in relatively strong molding compounds.
Reinforcements may have relatively high costs because of the use of synthetic fibers. In certain cases, synthetic fibers are costly because of their relatively high density and the significant amount of energy that may be expended during the formation of the synthetic fibers. For example, synthetic fibers are produced from purified raw materials into which significant energy may be expended during melting, forming, re-solidifying, applying binding agents, bundling, and applying primer to the fibers and bundles. Energy may also be expended by chopping these bundles into smaller fibers for use on molding compounds. Specialized and expensive equipment may be needed for these operations.
In light of the foregoing, what is needed is a method that provides molding compounds for molding operations forming articles that are sufficiently strong to substitute for existing articles while having economic advantages of relatively lower cost and/or weight.